


A whisper between us

by MyLadyDay



Series: Till we got nothing to lose [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Drunk confessions, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, M/M, Wrong number, mentions of pining, mild second hand embarrassment
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-12-24 11:42:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21098900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MyLadyDay/pseuds/MyLadyDay
Summary: “How drunk are you?”“Not nearly enough to have this conversation right now,” Ace replied, the defeat probably obvious in his voice. He already knew this would lead to a really long conversation at some point, but the drunkenness was turning into a chronically tired feeling and Ace just wanted to lie down and sleep and forget he made an ass of himself in front of his best friend because he couldn’t keep his goddamn mouth shut.





	A whisper between us

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted as 3 prompt fills in my ficlet collection Fire and flames. I loved the idea so I decided to put them all together and edit them into one fic (with some pretty big changes while I'm at it)
> 
> DO NOT COPY MY WORK TO OTHER SITES, THIS INCLUDES TRANSLATIONS MADE WITHOUT MY CONSENT.

“Are you sure you don’t want to go with me?” Ace asked for the fifth time in as many minutes, perched on the armrest of Marco’s couch. “Because you should totally go. You know Izou wants you there.”

Marco laughed at that, his eyes never leaving the laptop screen as he typed away. His lips moved as if to form an answer to Ace’s question, but Ace was having none of that.

“Don’t you dare say you’re too old to party,” he said, glaring a Marco even though Marco still refused to look at him.

“Fine, I won’t say it,” Marco replied. “But if the shoe fits,” he trailed off, obviously expecting Ace to just accept that.

“God, you’re an asshole,” Ace told him with a roll of his eyes. Marco only laughed again, like a bastard.

Ace stood from the couch, brushing off any stray cat hair off his pants with what he hoped was an air of dignity.

“Well, you stay here and be a hermit with your cat,” Ace said, glancing at Marco who was still not paying attention to him, “but I’m not letting my sex pants go to waste.”

Marco snorted at that and finally looked Ace over with unwavering focus, looked him over from head to toe, and perhaps lingered a bit on the pants. The approval was obvious on his face, and Ace was feeling a bit hot all of a sudden.

“Your ass looks better in those black jeans,” Marco said thoughtfully. “The ones you refuse to wear with anything but your biker boots because, and I quote, they look too emo with anything else.”

“I hate you,” Ace lied, like a big fat liar. Mostly because Marco was absolutely right about like everything at all times.

“No, you don’t,” Marco said with the smuggest look possible, “but it’s okay if you’re in denial, I’m used to it.”

God, he was insufferable and Ace wanted to punch that expression off his face. Or kiss it off, he would have been fine either way.

“Okay, you made your point, I’m never asking you to go party with me ever again,” Ace said with a sigh and another roll of his eyes. Marco made him roll his eyes a lot. 

“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,” Marco shouted after him as he made his way to the door.

“You’re staying home with your cat and your work on a Friday night, I’m already doing something you wouldn’t do,” Ace shouted back, “and leaving for someplace with more booze.”

Marco’s laughter followed him all the way down the hall and through the apartment door, briefly making Ace consider staying behind and just hanging out with Marco. But only briefly, before he was out of the apartment. He really needed a beer or two or ten, and maybe someone to go home with because it’d been a while.

He was putting a lot of hopes on a pair of pants and just thinking that brought back the sound of Marco’s laughter. Ace was so ready to drink those ten beers.

* * *

“Izou!” Ace shouted into his phone as soon as the call went through, completely ignoring the fact he’d shouted into his phone for a couple of minutes earlier before he’d realized he hadn’t even dialed the number yet. 

“Izou, this party is the best and I think I’m drunk!” he said, rather redundantly, because he was sure Izou could tell just how fucking drunk he was. “And I’m calling you because I need to tell someone I’m single and ready to fucking mingle and I really wanna call Marco. I wanna mingle with Marco. So much mingling, Izou. Dicks touching and all.” He took a deep breath, almost choking on nothing in his excitement.

“Izou, I need to bone Marco,” he said pretty reverently, and probably too loudly, but that didn’t matter. Everyone was still inside and the music was really loud in there so no one probably heard, other than Izou on the phone. That was funny, though, he could also see Izou inside, pouring drinks for Thatch and one of their fancy friends. 

Whatever, he had important business to think of, Izou was the least of his worries.

“Even if his dick is tiny, but I’m sure it isn’t. Wait I’ve seen his dick, Izou, I’ve seen _ the dick _ and he should brag about it more, but I know he won’t, he’s too good for that.”

“Uh, what the fuck, Ace?” came the reply, reluctant and somewhat choked off and so obviously not Izou.

“Aren’t you at Izou’s party?” Marco asked after a brief pause that was filled with nothing but awkwardness and the sound of Ace choking on his own idiocy.

He could feel himself sober up painfully quickly, even though he was still far too drunk to salvage the situation and he really _really_ needed Izou right now, he wasn’t ready to face any sort of consequences at the moment. His plan was foolproof, dammit, he just needed to call Izou whenever he felt the need to call Marco and say something stupid. Accidentally calling Marco’s number somehow didn’t seem like a possible weak spot to this plan.

“Uhm,” Ace mumbled, still too drunk to think properly, but sober enough to know he fucked up big time, “wrong number?”

“I kind of gathered that,” Marco replied with a huff. He sounded more like his usual self then. “How drunk are you?”

“Not nearly enough to have this conversation right now,” Ace replied, the defeat probably obvious in his voice. He already knew this would lead to a really long conversation at some point, but the drunkenness was turning into a chronically tired feeling and Ace just wanted to lie down and sleep and forget he made an ass of himself in front of his best friend because he couldn’t keep his goddamn mouth shut.

He could have been making out with someone instead of making Marco think he’s a complete and utter fool. Not even a moment later, Ace realized Marco knew exactly how much of a fool he was on the regular so the situation could have also been less horrible than expected.

“Did you leave Izou's place?” Marco asked, sounding more concerned, possibly a tiny bit amused like he usually was when Ace got smashed. “Do you need me to pick you up?

“No, I think I need another drink,” Ace said mournfully because he was still drunk as fuck and he most definitely fucked up this time.

“Ace,” Marco said, sounding awfully exasperated and done with Ace’s bullshit. So at least that was the same as usual.

“Alright,” Ace whined, knowing that he’d be embarrassed about that if he was sober, but then again, he’d be embarrassed about a lot of things if he had the presence of mind for that.

“I’ll go home with you if you tell me just how big your dick is,” he added triumphantly because his brain to mouth filter was still offline and he was a dumbass like that. “Fully hard and all.”

“Why don’t I pick you up first and then if you’re still curious tomorrow when you’re sober, I’ll show you,” Marco said, still sounding like he was choking. Ace was too busy cheering excitedly to bother with this sudden health issue Marco was experiencing.

“Now tell Izou I’m coming over to pick you up and meet me at the door in ten minutes,” Marco said and Ace was more than happy to listen.

* * *

It was the sun that woke him, shining way too brightly straight into his eyes. Bright enough to annoy him even with his eyes screwed shut, which made him groan for several very annoying reasons. The purring weight on his chest that he recognized a moment later, though, was the reason he didn’t try to fall asleep. Maple could always tell when he was awake and available for cuddles, but he ignored her for the time being and just let her purr away.

Ace considered himself lucky in a couple of ways, none of which made him happy at the moment. For one, his alcohol tolerance was unbeatable and it generally took a lot to actually get drunk. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually gotten drunk, and really, he couldn’t see himself doing it again any time soon. 

Then there was also the fact he never got hungover, no matter how much he’d had to drink. His head was fine if he pretended the sun wasn’t the bane of his existence, his stomach was achingly empty in the worst post alcohol way, and his mouth tasted like he’d never brushed his teeth in his life. The taste of his mouth probably hurt the most, but overall, he was perfectly fine physically.

So technically, he wasn’t really lucky at all. Cursed maybe, because he didn’t even have the luxury of forgetting every _ excruciating _moment he’d spent on the phone with Marco the night before. He could have taken a moment to hope it had all been a vivid booze-induced dream, but he didn’t need to open his eyes to know the couch he was lying on was settled in the middle of Marco’s living room. 

He secured his arm around Maple’s fluffy little body so that he could roll over on his side and take her with him, tucking her between his chest and the back of the couch. His face was mashed into the incredibly soft pillow that constantly smelled like vanilla while Maple purred up a storm against his chest, and he was obviously covered with the horribly ugly yet fuzzy orange blanket Ace himself bought ages ago despite the fact it matched exactly nothing Marco owned. Marco still kept it on his nice grownup person couch at all times. 

Ace focused on all of that for a moment, savoring the scent of vanilla coming off the pillow and enjoying how comfy Marco’s couch was compared to the one in his own apartment. It was much easier to think about than the alternative.

But once it crossed his mind, Ace couldn’t just _not_ think about it anymore. He could already hear _ the conversation _ play out and just considering it was building up a headache he’d avoided from his hangover. There were ways to avoid talking about the whole thing, of course, but unless he wanted to stop being friends with Marco altogether, Ace knew he’d go through with it anyway. It wouldn’t be their first awkward conversation, or the last most likely. They’d been friends for a really long time, and some amount of embarrassment was hard to ignore through the years. But they’d always made it through that and there was no reason for Ace to think this time would be different. They’d always been friends, and they always would be, no matter what. 

And yet a small part of him was itching to pretend he didn’t remember, to pretend nothing was said that could change things between them. That small part was terrified Marco wouldn’t look at him the same because Ace had to open his stupid mouth. It was a very small part overall, but big enough for a brief moment of unadulterated fear.

That fear melted away the moment Ace heard a door creak open down the hall just before Marco walked into the living room. Ace could see him over the back of the couch, how he stopped in his tracks as soon as their eyes met. Probably for the first time ever, Ace couldn’t handle looking directly into Marco’s eyes, not quite yet. 

His first mistake was lowering his gaze, though, and noticing that Marco was shirtless. It wasn’t unusual, it wasn’t new for them to walk around in various states of undress, but at that moment, Ace couldn’t help but feel like he was seeing Marco for the first time. He told himself his mouth was dry from all the booze.

“Good morning,” Marco said and the amusement in his voice was undeniable, just like the relief that coursed through Ace at hearing it. Marco wasn’t looking at him any differently and Ace almost gasped from the weight being lifted off him. Maybe there was still hope for...well he didn’t really know what he was hoping for at the moment, but he kept stroking Maple’s fur just to keep himself grounded.

“Morning,” Ace replied, biting his tongue on an apology for the entire phone call. It didn’t feel like the time for that yet.

Maple chose that moment to flail her way from where he’d tucked her in so Ace sat up on the couch, the blanket sliding down and pooling in his lap as he rubbed at his face just to hide from Marco’s gaze for a moment. For possibly the first time ever, Ace felt self-conscious to be sitting there in nothing but his boxers. He groaned just loud enough because some embarrassment was getting through after all. Marco only snorted from where he stood, but Ace could see his eyes wander slightly before he walked back down the hall. A moment later, a pair of sweatpants Ace was already intimately familiar with fell over his head. 

It didn’t escape his notice that there was no shirt for him, just the sweats, but Marco did put a shirt one while he’d been gone. It was Ace’s old Led Zeppelin shirt no less, one he’d left in Marco’s care years ago. That had to mean something, Ace was sure.

“You look like you need those,” Marco pointed out before strolling towards the kitchen like it was just any Saturday morning. “I’ll make some coffee. You look like you need some of that too.” The smile was audible in his voice and that ultimately eased the awkwardness Ace couldn’t rid himself of.

Still, he put the sweats on quickly, sure that things would feel normal once there were at least some clothes between them. Ace was well aware that his worst usually included nudity, and in all the years they’d been friends, Marco had seen Ace naked way too many times. This one time it felt like too much. So at the moment, Ace chose to get up and follow Marco to the kitchen.

Staying on the couch felt too much like hiding, and he was nothing if not brave. Or at least determined to not be a coward.

Looking at Marco in the kitchen, though, as he went about making coffee and breakfast for the both of them without even having to ask for Ace’s preferences, briefly glancing over at Maple as she sat on the counter next to him, made something warm well up in Ace’s chest. Ace couldn’t help but _ want_, looking at Marco like this; completely at ease and humming Mr. Blue Sky all the while shaking his hips just a little to the tune, while Maple looked at him curiously. Ace had wanted a lot ever since he realized his feelings for Marco changed somewhere along the way, but he didn’t think he could deal with all of those wants. 

Wanting to walk up to Marco as he cooked breakfast, plastering himself against Marco’s back and pestering him while he cooked just to tease and hear him grumble without meaning it. Just to get a laugh out of him because his laugh could light up a room. He wanted to kiss his neck and his cheek and that spot behind his ear just to see if it would lead to some kind of reaction. They were all stupidly domestic things he could see himself doing after waking up to Marco sleeping next to him.

And yet all he could talk about on the phone last night was his dick. While curious about that too, it wasn’t even close to the extent of his wants that were tumbling down on him the longer he watched Marco in his element, still humming, still happy.

“Are we going to talk about it?” he asked, suddenly brave, his voice awfully soft. 

The helpless wanting was drowning him, and he barely had enough will to deal with it as he watched Marco, every passing second making the want stronger until his hands itched to touch. The cat was out of the bag anyway, he could see that and accept that there was no way to pretend that phone call ever happened. The floodgates were open and he might as well try to make something of the situation.

Ace could see Marco stop mid-motion, hand hovering over the tacky red mug he kept in his cabinet specifically for Ace. There were so many things Marco did just for Ace and wasn’t that a curious thing to think about.

“Does that mean you still want to know?” Marco asked after a beat, and Ace hated himself a little because the happy humming had stopped and Marco’s shoulders were tense and he _never_ wanted to be the person who made Marco lose the happy beat in his step. 

There was something in his voice that Ace didn’t dare place, something soft and fragile, as if the question was about more than what he promised on the phone. Ace just wanted him to hum again and smile, not sound like he was walking on eggshells around Ace. They were never this uncertain with each other and it hurt almost too much to put into words.

“Yes,” Ace said, still so careful, “but I’m curious about a lot of other things. Like what it’d feel like to kiss you good morning and if you like to cuddle in your sleep and if you’d let me blow you in the shower just because we have the time.”

He could hear himself say all of that, but it still felt surreal to share just a small fraction of the things he wanted. Couldn’t help but hope Marco would want some of those things too.

Marco lowered his arm slowly, without grabbing the mug after all, before he turned to Ace with a calculating look on his face. Ace still felt oddly self-conscious under his gaze, something he never felt in front of Marco before. Something he never wanted to feel again because he knew Marco didn’t judge him or hate him because he was better than that, but his gaze was still too heavy when he stayed quiet like that. For all the years Ace had known him, Marco still had an unreadable poker face at the worst of times.

He was being looked over for what felt like a painful eternity before Marco finally smiled that small soft smile of his as he leaned back against the counter.

“Well, it is still morning,” he said, the smile widening a little, but it made his eyes shine with the honesty of it, “so you can still find out if you want.”

Ace couldn’t help but grin back, the weight of the morning finally lifting fully because Marco may not have said it in as many words, but this was more than just an invitation for a kiss and they both knew it. He stood there in the kitchen doorway, smiling like a complete fool all the while mentally thanking his stupid drunk ass for calling Marco the night before after all. He’d never really given this much thought, never contemplated what Marco would possibly say if Ace ever brought this up to him because it was never a realistic option to begin with. 

He felt stupid about that while taking in the look on Marco’s face, so open and inviting and almost painfully loving. Crossing those few steps between them seemed like the easiest thing Ace had done in his life. His hands found their way onto the kitchen counter on either side of Marco’s hips as he pressed his chest against Marco’s, their noses almost touching. Marco did nothing to move, though, only looking into Ace’s eyes and still smiling that smile of his that made Ace want to taste it.

He could have cried with the urge to press his lips against Marco’s, barely able to hold back long enough to remember that his mouth still tasted absolutely disgusting from all the beer and whatever else Izou let him drink. Ace grimaced before he could finally get his kiss and Marco’s face fell immediately. It was a small, barely noticeable change, but Ace knew better than to dismiss it for anything other than the disappointment it was.

“I need to brush my teeth,” he said in a panic because the last thing he wanted was to make Marco think he didn’t want this after all. He was breaking his own heart just a little by pulling away. “Like really _ really _need to or I’m afraid it’ll make you not like me very much.”

Marco grimaced as well, that look gone from his face. “Oh, I trust you,” he said, back to sounding amused as if he’d just remembered the sorry state Ace had been in the night before. “You know where the spare toothbrush is.”

“Don’t go anywhere, I’ll be right back,” Ace said then pressed a quick kiss to Marco’s forehead just to reassure them both before he ran off towards the bathroom. The sound of Marco laughing behind him made something in his chest clench in the best of ways, knowing he’d made Marco laugh just like he wanted. It was enough to make him forget just how ridiculous the entire situation was turning out.

Ace still hurried through brushing his teeth, ignoring his reflection in the mirror that showed just how much of a mess he looked like at the moment. Marco had seen worse so far, especially from him, and yet it didn’t stop him from wanting Ace to kiss him and that spoke so much about how big of a fool he’d been.

As soon as humanly possible, Ace was running out of the bathroom again, not even a bit embarrassed when he tripped over Maple as she darted past him towards the bedroom and almost face-planted into the wall in his hurry. No one saw so it was like it never happened at all. He would have gladly taken a hit to the face just to get a chance to kiss Marco.

He found it funny just how bad he had it for Marco.

Marco’s back was turned to him again when he finally made it back to the kitchen. There were two mugs next to him, one of them Ace’s red mug that matched nothing in the apartment, just like the orange blanket. Just like Ace himself, and yet Marco always made him feel like he belonged, like this was home, just because Marco was there too. 

He stopped in the doorway again, just to watch for a while longer. Ace could see the muscles in his back shift under the old threadbare shirt he was wearing as he stirred their coffees, once again humming. It sounded like _ Come and get your love _ this time and Ace couldn’t help but smile. His hair was a mess too, as much as his hair could be a mess that is, and his sweatpants had a big blue paint splatter just underneath his ass that Ace knew he could never wash out after they painted the living room a few months earlier. He stood there barefoot, even though Ace knew he hated being barefoot on the cold kitchen tiles.

Somehow, Ace couldn’t remember him ever looking better.

Without a second thought, Ace moved forward until he could wrap his arms around Marco’s waist and rest his chin on Marco’s shoulder. Marco was smiling, not surprised in the slightest at the contact and Ace figured he could try his luck, pressing his lips against Marco’s cheek. All he got was a hum in reply and he smiled, moving a bit so he could press his lips against Marco’s neck next just like he wanted.

It felt much better than he’d imagined.

This time there was a laugh, warm and happy and better than anything Ace had been expecting after the disaster from the night before.

And yet Marco changed his mind not even a moment later, just like he somehow always managed to, when he glanced at Ace over his shoulder before turning just enough to make pressing his lips against Ace’s easier. It was incredibly awkward and not the most comfortable way to kiss someone, but it was perfect nonetheless. 

A simple press of his lips against Marco’s, and he was completely gone on Marco for good. His arms tightened around Marco’s waist just for a moment, until Marco broke the contact between their lips to smile again. It was a gorgeous fucking smile that made Ace want to kiss him again and again.

“I was going to make us breakfast,” Marco said, still looking at Ace over his shoulder. “But I have a feeling you may have something else in mind first.”

He turned in Ace’s arms until they were chest to chest, and Ace could slide his hands under Marco’s shirt just to feel the warmth of his skin. 

It was almost too much to look into his eyes when they were so blue and beautiful and full of affection, but it was also impossible for Ace to look away. Especially with the way Marco’s hands came up to slide against his jaw and brush against his neck until Marco could tangle his fingers into his hair.

“Looks like you’re not in a hurry to have breakfast either,” Ace said, watching as his words made Marco’s smile wider and happier, and god he was so in love it hurt in the best way.

Marco was the one to lean in and press his lips against Ace’s this time, quick to part them and Ace moaned a bit at the chance to taste him finally, to have something he hadn’t even been considering. He’d been in love so long that it became a part of him like anything else, something he barely spoke of because it was just a reality. The sky was blue, Maple was the softest cat ever and Ace loved Marco. 

One of those things that didn’t warrant any deep thought because they just _ are_.

And yet here they were, pressed together against Marco’s kitchen counter with no space left between them, and Ace couldn’t remember a time when he’d felt more at home. Marco broke the kiss then, the first to let go, but it didn’t feel like an end to anything, not when he was looking at Ace like that. The look mirrored everything Ace was feeling and it was everything he needed.

“I’d be happy to show you anything else you’re curious about,” Marco said, just a whisper between them. “After breakfast.”

With a quick peck to Ace’s lips, he turned in Ace’s arms again, but did nothing to show he wanted Ace to move or let go while he cooked. Not that Ace wanted to when he finally had a chance to hold on and pester Marco while he cooked just to hear him laugh again.

**Author's Note:**

> Maple is a Siamese cat, her full name is Maple Syrup cause of her paws :D


End file.
